If you’re heading to college this fall, you may be focused on the major costs—tuition and fees, possibly room and board. We have examined some of the other costs of college, such as textbooks and college debit cards, that can really add up if you’re not looking out for them. Here’s some information to helpRead… Read more »
The unofficial end of summer, Labor Day is a holiday for celebrating the economic and social contributions of the American worker. It’s also a good time to think about protecting those workers from occupational hazards. We have many federal safety and health standards to protect workers at more than 8 million U.S. worksites, but accidentsRead… Read more »
Hurricane season is well under way, and we’re highlighting some of our reports and resources that can help inform federal disaster management in events such as hurricanes. 2014’s first named storm, Hurricane Arthur, has already found a place in the record books. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Weather Service, July 3rd—whenRead… Read more »
Improper payments are always an area of concern for the federal government. These include overpayments, underpayments, payments made to ineligible recipients, or even payments that weren’t properly documented. While fraudulent payments are considered improper, not all improper payments are the result of fraud. For example, improper payments can be a result of mismanagement, errors, orRead… Read more »
As summer’s barbecues and beach days wind down, so do the experiences of a select group of graduate and undergraduate students in GAO’s Student Intern Program. We talked to some of them about their experiences. Student interns are hired to contribute to our teams and gain experience in the roles of analysts, program staff, orRead… Read more »
Have you flown recently? You might feel like your options are more limited because of trends in air service and recent airline mergers. But do you really have fewer airlines to choose from? In the last several months, GAO has reported on changes in the airline industry and their implications for consumers and communities. AirRead… Read more »
News stories about older adults whose trusted family members or other caretakers deny them food and water, leave them to live under deplorable conditions, or physically and psychologically abuse them are all too common. Neglect and abuse can often go hand in hand with financial exploitation, which can rob older adults of the life savingsRead… Read more »
As GAO has produced reports over the years, we’ve used graphics to help showcase our findings. With innovations in how we publish our reports, our graphic style has changed dramatically over the past 30 years. The 1980s We used rapidograph pens and Letraset machines to set graphics into typewritten reports. This example of a graphicRead… Read more »
The Departments of Defense (DOD) and Veterans Affairs (VA) operate two of the nation’s largest health care systems, providing care to more than 9.6 million active-duty servicemembers and 6.3 million veterans. For many years, DOD and VA have known that better sharing of health care data could help them: make patient information more available toRead… Read more »
In response to the worst financial crisis in more than 75 years, U.S. policymakers undertook wide-ranging reforms. For example, the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act) aims, among other things: to promote the financial stability of the nation by improving accountability and transparency in the financial system, to deal withRead… Read more »